Operation Set-Up Swotty Bookworm and Albino Ferret
by DragonCastle
Summary: In the new era of peace, Slytherins and Gryffindors form friendships and find love together. Except Draco Malfoy and Hermione Granger who still appear to despise each other. But their friends will soon put a stop to that.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Not that heavy on the Dramione interaction since this will be a story told mainly from the point of view of onlookers. You can still leave if that isn't your thing. :))

PS (JUL. 21,2014) Minor grammar and spacing corrections.

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Chapter One: The Big Discovery

Pansy Parkinson stepped off from the fireplace and brushed off the non-existent soot from her soot-repellent robes. They cost a fortune but she believed in investments. And ensuring that she looked far superior from any Gryffindor was an investment in her eyes. She surveyed the motley crew that has gathered in Grimmauld Place's living room while she was far too busy being fashionably late.

Ron Weasley was sitting in one of the loveseats with Daphne Greengrass on his lap.

The younger Greengrass, Astoria, was ensconced between her twin lovers, Fred and George Weasely, who were alternating between tickling her and feeding her grapes. With their mouths.

Blaise Zabini was snogging the girl Weasley under the mistletoe. Nevermind that it's in the middle of July and they had to conjure a mistletoe for the lewd purposes.

Vincent Crabbe was holding Luna Lovegood's hand as she told him stories about her close encounters with the Crumple-Horned Snorkack.

And Gregory Goyle was kneeling in front of a very pregnant Lavender Goyle nee Brown as he massaged her swollen ankles.

"Late again, Parkinson?" A soft voice whispered in her ear as an arm wrapped around her waist.

"Stop doing that, Potter," Pansy sniffed, "or I might get the idea that you're missing me too much."

"And why is missing my fiancée too much a bad thing again?"

"Oh, I don't know," she said as she turned to face him. "Care to show me how much you missed me again?"

Harry moved his head closer to hers. "More than you can tell, Parkinson."

Pansy angled her head, lips inching closer to Harry's when a gold throw pillow hit them at the side of their faces.

"Get a room, Potter!" Smirked Blaise. Pansy scoffed but untangled herself from her fiancé's arms anyway.

"You're the one to talk, Zabini. Done playing tonsil Quidditch?"

"Oh yes, and what a talented Chaser Ginny is, I must say."

"Ew, gross." Daphne muttered under her breath. "I do not have to subject myself to the torture of hearing the torrid details of your love lives, thank you very much."

"Why, Daphne, if you keep on acting like that, I'd have to conclude that you're just being jealous. Weasley not much of a lover? I didn't mean you, darling." Blaise added, pecking his girlfriend on the cheek.

Ron's face reddened. "Shut up, Zabini. I'll have you know that Daphne and I spent the whole weekend at our flat and we did nothing but – mmph." He was silenced by the hand the Slytherin girl placed firmly on his mouth.

"There is such a thing as too much information, Ronald. Oh, honestly. Boys." Daphne then turned to her sister who was still busy playing with Fred's hair as George played with hers. "You better have a good explanation calling us out here, Astoria."

Astoria seemed to be knocked back to the real world as she quickly stood up and straightened her robes. "Oh, yes! Well you see, we, that is, Fred, George, and I, have noticed something about Draco and Granger."

Everyone's curiosity was piqued. After the war, prejudices were shattered. A muggle-born holding hands with a pureblood was now widely acceptable even in the most elite pureblood circles. The words blood traitor and mudblood held no more meaning other than obsolete terms. A new peace was achieved, and testament to this was the most unlikely of relationships blooming left and right.

The only exception to this was Hermione Granger and Draco Malfoy. They saw each other quite regularly. The Goyle-Brown wedding. The Potter-Parkinson engagement party. The Zabini monthly galas. Sunday morning brunch at the Weasleys. Not to mention they both work together at the Ministry. Both as Aurors. With each other as a partner. With this kind of interaction on an almost daily basis, one could only wonder why the top students of their batch in Hogwarts have yet to find a balance to co-exist peacefully. Merlin knows they get along with other people they hated just as much in school. Draco has even received a Weasely sweater in Slytherin green last Christmas that he wears at the Auror office on extremely chilly days. So why the special hate for each other?

"What did you notice, Astoria?" Lavender asked.

"Well, last Monday, I went to the Auror office to deliver the report on the Department of Mysteries break-in to Harry." Harry was Head Auror and Astoria was an Unspeakable. "But then I heard shouting coming from Draco and Granger's office. The door opened and Hermione suddenly stormed out, Draco, hot on her heels. She threatened to hex him and left after that."

That sounded like a typical Draco Hermione argument. Everyone looked at Astoria, wondering if that's all that they were summoned for.

"I was Draco's intended." The girl continued. "I've been with him for a few years before finding true love," she grinned at her lovers, "so I'm pretty sure I know his emotions. I couldn't be wrong with what I saw with his eyes that day. It was a flash, but watching her stalk away from him, I could swear that Draco's eyes darkened and he looked at Granger with something akin to desire."

Everybody stared at the girl, processing this new bit of information. It was Ginny who spoke first.

"Are you implying what I think you're implying?"

"If you think I'm implying that Draco is head-over-heels for Granger, then yes."

"B-but, that's preposterous!" Ron exclaimed.

"No it isn't." Crabbe said softly. "Goyle and I have always wondered why Draco kept a picture of Granger under his pillow for years."

All eyes were now on Crabbe and Goyle. All aforementioned eyes were threatening to pop out of their sockets.

"Malfoy kept a picture of Hermione under his pillow?" Harry said, shocked.

"For four years." Goyle confirmed. "Well, not really sure about that, but Crabbe and I found the picture in third year."

"Then, the day before graduation, we found it again stashed between Draco's books." Crabbe added.

"We asked him about it. He turned red. First time I saw Draco not ghostly pale. Then he snatched it back and muttered something about voodoo."

"And you accepted that lame excuse?" Blaise intoned monotonously.

"Maybe the wrackspurts are messing with your brain." Luna said dreamily.

Goyle's face scrunched up. "How is that a lame excuse?"

"Well, how about the fact that we're actual magical people who don't need voodoo rubbish to curse anyone?" Lavender sighed grumpily.

"Sorry, Lav." Goyle muttered.

"It's okay, Greg." The witch smiled. They looked at each other adoringly, much to the chagrin of the onlookers.

Blaise cleared his throat. "Ahem, now back to the matter at hand. Draco fancies Granger. So what?"

"Tut, tut, I would have expected better from you, Zabini." George said. "Now that we know Albino Ferret fancies Swotty Bookworm, we can now act on the pretense of being good friends to set them up!"

"Excuse me?" Ron said, "I thought I heard you say we're setting Malfoy and Hermione up."

"My little brother, always keen with ear hygiene he is." Fred said in mock pride. "You heard right, Ronnie."

"Preposterous!" Ron exclaimed.

"You might want to teach your boyfriend new vocabulary, Daphne. He seems to be overusing that word lately."

"Listen, everyone," Harry spoke, in an attempt to be the voice of reason, "it might be that Malfoy likes Hermione, but to set them up because of that is a tad bit unfair. Hermione can't stand him!"

"Au contraire, Mr. Potter." George smirked.

"What do you mean?"

"You see, Harry, the other day, Hermione dropped by the shop to stack up on Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder. Said it was useful for covert operations."

Harry nodded. They did use the powder occasionally in the field.

"So being the good friends that we are, we dropped whatever we were doing to assist her." Said Fred.

"Never mind that we were in the middle of brewing a very important potion and the shop was closed for the day and she didn't even bother looking at the CLOSED sign." Added George.

"And then she said, tell them what Miss Granger said, Georgie."

" 'Did Malfoy drop by?'" George said in an unnaturally high-pitched voice that was a poor imitation of Hermione.

"Despite our quick wits, we were confused," George continued in his normal voice, "we were about to ask why, when suddenly she said, do continue Freddy."

" 'Because it awfully smells like his pungent cologne here.'" Fred said in an impression no better than his twin's.

"But the thing is, Malfoy didn't come into the shop all day at all! Heck, the shop was closed for the day on account of us brewing our very important potion."

"I fail to see where you're going with this." Pansy intoned.

"Well, future-Mrs-Potter, it's because you wouldn't let us finish." George heaved a dramatic sigh. "Are you ready for this? Because this is the best part."

"George and I were brewing Amortentia that day. And Hermione Granger was standing by the fumes." Everyone gasped. Amortentia was the most potent love potion known to wizard-kind. Everyone knows that the scent you smell in the potion is the one you're deeply attracted to.

"Whatever did you guys needed Amortentia for?" Lavender asked.

"Experiments for our new love potion line." George shrugged dismissively. "Anyway, the girl was so much in a hurry, she didn't even notice the mother-of-pearl liquid bubbling right beside her."

"Yet she never failed to complain on the 'pungent'" Fred made air quotations with his fingers as he said the word pungent, "aroma of Draco Malfoy's cologne."

"I don't think that's enough proof of attraction." Harry told them. "I mean, it's not like no other bloke in the world uses that cologne other than Malfoy."

"No, Harry." Pansy said quietly. "Malfoy's cologne is a custom-made original by the most famous wizard perfume-maker in France. It costs a hundred galleons a bottle and he's been using it since sixth year. No other wizard in the world uses that cologne and on the off chance that someone else does use it, it would react in a different way to their body and produce a completely different scent."

"I didn't realize that Draco was that vain." Luna said.

"Oh, you haven't seen him talk to himself in front of a mirror yet." Blaise snorted.

"So you're saying Hermione is attracted to Malfoy?" Ginny asked her twin brothers to which they responded with an enthusiastic nod.

"Preposterous." Ron muttered.

"And there he goes again," Fred said as he rolled his eyes. "Listen, it's easy to see. I mean, once you know that they fancy each other, suddenly the omnipresent tense atmosphere makes a lot more sense."

"Sexual tension?"

"Hit the nail on the head, Potter!" George grinned.

"And you're telling us this, why?" Pansy drawled.

"So we can set them up, of course!"

"Why should we do that again?" Daphne asked as she raised her perfectly shaped brow.

Fred looked at his brother's girlfriend like she'd grown a second head. "Aren't you people tired of them bickering and shooting each other death glares at every social occasion?" A murmur of assent rippled across the room.

"I do want a peaceful wedding with no worries of one of my bridesmaids hexing one of the groomsmen." Pansy said thoughtfully.

"It's settled then! Operation Set-up Swotty Bookworm and Albino Ferret is underway! Any ideas?"

"I think I got one." Harry said with a mischievous smirk, reminiscent of his Hogwarts days.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Thank you to the people who reviewed/favorited/story alerted/author alerted me or the story. :)

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Chapter Two: A Not So Covert Operation

Daphne was stirring her tea idly, as the rest of them waited for Pansy who was once again late, before they started their second meeting on Operation Set-Up Swotty Bookworm and Albino Ferret, as nicknamed by the twin doofuses. Of course she'd never say that in front of her sister. Nor to her future in-laws. She chuckled quietly as she realized she and her sister would be marrying into the same family. Suddenly, the fireplace flared up and Pansy stepped out, impeccably dressed as usual.

"I do believe that the concept of punctuality is foreign to you, Pansy dear." Daphne drawled lazily.

"I only feel the need to be punctual when in good company." Pansy scoffed. Suddenly, Harry came into the room bringing a tray of scones.

"Oh, good, everybody's here. We can start while you taste the scones I made."

Ginny eyed the scones Harry set on the table warily. "Is it edible?"

Harry scoffed. "Of course it is. I cook for myself whenever Hermione threatens Kreacher to go on day-offs."

"Speaking of Hermione," Luna said as she nibbled on a scone. "What happened to your plan, Harry?"

"Horribly." Butted in Astoria. "Harry assigned Draco and Granger to the Department of Mysteries break-in case."

"They had to spend overnight in the Department of Mysteries! It was supposed to get them to spend alone time together in the dark!"

Astoria rolled her eyes. "Real smooth."

"Harry is a firm believer of 'snog and get it over with'." Ron explained with a pointed look at Pansy that made the witch flush.

"How did you know it went badly anyway?" Lavender asked curiously.

Slowly, Harry faced them and began to unbutton his shirt. Fred and George quickly covered Astoria's eyes. The rest stared at The-Boy-Who-Lived as he became The-Man-Who-Stripped.

Pansy rolled her eyes. "Oh, for Merlin's sake, get your minds off the gutter! Harry is not stripping in front of you." Then she added quietly, "some things are for my eyes only."

True enough, Harry's shirt buttons were opened only up to the third from the top. He pulled down one side exposing a blackish purple patch of skin just below his shoulder. Ron winced at the sight.

"So I guess this is enough proof how badly the debacle ended?" Harry told them as he buttoned up his shirt.

"Oh, dear. What happened, Harry?" Ginny asked.

"The culprit was apprehended of course. Malfoy and Hermione are my best Aurors after all."

"I mean with Hermione and Malfoy."

"When they came to the Ministry the following morning, they were more aggravated at each other if that was even possible. I was with them at the lift and I went off a floor before my actual stop because I couldn't stand the tension crackling between them." Astoria said.

"I was at my office that time, doing paperwork. Suddenly, one of the other Aurors, Nott, I think barged in the room and demanded I break off Malfoy and Hermione before they kill each other." Harry told them. "Apparently, they were at the Auror training grounds, on the pretense of a sparring match between partners. But you could see the intent to maim in Hermione's eyes, and Malfoy wasn't any better." Harry shivered as he recalled the image. "I began to come closer to stop them when a stray hex hit me. I guess me getting hurt was a good thing, as I don't believe anything short of the Head Auror crumpled in pain by their feet would divert their attention."

"You should have just stunned them." Said Pansy as-a-matter-of-factly.

"Well, sorry for not hexing my best friend and my top Auror."

Pansy responded with an eye-roll.

"That's one plan down the drain, I guess." Spoke Fred thoughtfully. "Any more ideas? Preferably one that might work this time."

"I resent that." Harry chimed in.

"Do you people still think that this is a good idea? Getting Malfoy and Hermione together? I mean, they obviously hate each other!"

"Tut, tut, little sister," George said patronizingly, "I didn't think that you would suggest that something like schoolyard rivalry is a damper of any kind to love."

"Didn't think she'd suggest it while safely cocooned in her Big, Bad, Slytherin's arms, Georgie." Butted in Fred.

"They're right, you know." Ron said suddenly. "Everyone of us here has hated our partners at least at one point in our lives. Yet we're strangely happy in our current predicament. Who's to say that it won't be the same for Hermione and Malfoy too?" Everyone stared at Ron in awe. Suddenly, Fred and George prostrated themselves before Daphne.

"We thank you, m'lady, not only for being the wonderful sister to our lovely, lovely princess," Fred gestured to Astoria, "but also in widening the emotional range of our brother."

"I do think his emotional range is a tablespoon now, Freddy. He has come a long way from the annoying git of last week who only knows how to say 'preposterous' at every new bit of information."

"Shut up." Ron said, reddening slightly, as Daphne chuckled at the twin's antics.

Ginny huffed. "Fine, you got me there. However, let me just say that any future plans about this needs to have supervision throughout to ensure that no blood is spilled." Nobody argued. Everyone knew how explosive their fights could be. Petty bickering between them has ended to a full-blown wizard's duel more times than they care to count.

"I got it!" Blaise exclaimed. "The Zabini monthly gala is next Saturday!"

"Yes!" Lavender replied with equal excitement. "It would be the perfect opportunity to doll Hermione up."

"And make Malfoy pull his head out of his arse." Pansy added.

"And at the same time, let us keep an eye on them." Harry said. "It's perfect, Zabini! You're a bloody genius!"


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three: The Ball that Refused to Get Rolling

"You're a bloody tosser, Zabini." Harry groaned against the ice pack pressed against his face.

It was Sunday. The night after the Zabini gala and coincidentally, a week after the second meeting of Operation Set-Up Swotty Bookworm and Albino Ferret. The group has congregated once more at 12 Grimmauld Place.

"Not my fault you got hexed again, Potter. Where have those world-famous Quidditch reflexes gone?"

"Shut your trap and hand me the Pain-Relieving Potion."

Harry closed his eyes as the soothing liquid washed over his system, when suddenly his girlfriend plopped down on the couch beside him.

"What did I miss?" Pansy asked.

"Other than the moaning Harry Potter? Not very much."

Pansy raised her eyebrow, "I think I've seen that already, thank you very much." She said saucily.

"Gee, thanks for the mental image, Pans."

"Let's get down to business shall we?" Lavender Goyle said impatiently. "We've got an eight o' clock appointment with Healer Davis."

"You should try asking the Widgederdimples for blessing in your pregnancy, Lavender. They like babies and wouldn't hesitate to help you out in childbirth if you asked." Luna said conspiratorially.

"Er, thank you, Luna."

Astoria clapped her hands to get their attention. "We really should get started." She said. "We're really behind schedule if we want them to be halfway decent to each other by Pansy and Harry's wedding."

The aforementioned wedding was in a month's time. Hermione was one of Pansy's bridesmaids, having formed a bond with the girl during the past few years. Draco was one of the groomsmen. He and Harry became close not only through Auror work but through a mutual hate for the Falmouth Falcons Quidditch team.

"Thank goodness they're not partnered at the entourage." Pansy sighed with relief. The bridal procession consisted of an entourage of bridesmaids and groomsmen partnered together before finally reaching the bride.

"Um, well, Pans, about that," Harry cut in sheepishly.

Pansy did not like the way Harry said that. "What?" She snapped.

"First of all, woman, remember I'm still injured." Pansy looked like she was about to strangle him. "Draco and Hermione are paired up at the entourage." He said very quickly it was a miracle somebody managed to catch what he was saying at all.

"Excuse me?" Pansy said coldly. "I thought you said Draco and Hermione are partnered for the entourage." Harry replied with a quick nod.

Pansy's face reddened with anger. "Are you trying to destroy our wedding, Potter?"

"I'm sorry!" Harry said with his palms up in a submissive gesture. "But there's no choice! It's not like these gits," he gestured at the people gathered at his living room, "would go with anyone else other than their own partners!"

"Calm down, Pansy." Luna said, "I'm sure Draco and Hermione have already gotten together by your wedding."

"Gee, I'm sure too." The Slytherin girl replied sarcastically. "I mean, after what happened last night, everything's bound to sail smoothly from now on."

Everybody cringed at the thought of what happened the previous night. The evening had started fairly well. Hermione was dressed in a silver dress robes that was cut low at the front revealing an ample amount of cleavage. Her hair was put up with a few loose tendrils and her make-up was impeccable. All in all, Pansy and Ginny did an excellent job.

When they arrived, the party was already in full swing. They dragged the unsuspecting Gryffindor to the buffet table where their friends, including Malfoy, were chatting. The atmosphere was light and Draco and Hermione seemed to have gotten over the fiasco at the Department of Mysteries the previous week. This was one of the instances where the Auror partners were being friendly to one another and even exchanged a joke or two. The dancing soon began and everyone felt it was a good opportunity to test the waters.

By the second song, Hermione was wrapped in Draco's arms, swaying softly to the music. The scheming women looked at the pair and sighed happily. The men looked at each other and grinned. The night was turning out to be perfect.

The next thing they knew, Hermione was pushing Draco away from her and running towards the opposite direction.

Harry and Ron took after her immediately but Hermione was lighter and quicker. They lost her as soon as she entered the vast Zabini gardens. The pair wandered about, looking for their female friend. Suddenly, Harry was hit by a jet of gold light knocking him backwards.

They have stumbled upon the center of the garden, the stone plaza, and at the middle stood Hermione shooting spells at random to release some steam. It was one of her habits to cool down her temper. Which means whatever happened between her and Malfoy at the dance floor wasn't good by any measure.

"Did you try asking Draco what happened?" Astoria frowned. "They seemed to be getting along fairly well at first."

"He really didn't give any of us much of a chance as he made a beeline toward the floo as soon as Granger went bolting the opposite direction." Crabbe replied.

"Pig went home today a few pounds fatter but without a reply from him. I swear the owl feed he gives Attila is too much." Ron said.

"Fancy interrogating him tomorrow at work then, Potter?" Blaise asked with a grin to which Harry winced.

"I don't want to risk an angry Auror venting out his frustrations at me, thank you very much."

"Well, what about Granger then? Did she say anything?"

"Nothing other than the standard 'Draco Malfoy is a sodding git and should go to the fiery pits of hell' spiel." Ron reported dutifully.

A moment of silence passed as everyone contemplated on what to do next. Luna suddenly spoke up. "Has anybody already gone to the Poisoned Apple?"

The group looked at Luna strangely. The Poisoned Apple is a sketchy strip club in Knockturn Alley. Despite the favorable outcome of the war, it was still a place for dealings that involved exchange of Dark items. The owner is a dodgy old man who, despite the amount of evidence stacked against him, always manages to slip out. Currently, there is an open case at the Department of Magical Law Enforcement that deals on having it closed once and for all.

"I heard that there were quite a few good leads that might lead to its closing once and for all." Luna continued while looking pointedly at Harry.

Confused on how the girl knew, Harry cleared his throat. "Well, yes. In fact, we're supposed to have an operation there later this week." He said, failing to see where this is going.

"Oh, good. I was thinking maybe you could send Hermione to do it."

Harry was taken aback. "The dealings at the Poisoned Apple are a bit serious, Luna. Nothing compared to the small-time hubbub at the Department of Mysteries last week. And given how badly that one turned out, I don't think it's wise to send Draco and Hermione on a mission for matchmaking purposes again."

"But I'm not asking you to send Draco." She said innocently. The rest looked at her like she's off her rocker.

"Draco is Hermione's partner, Lulu." Crabbe reminded her softly as he held her hand.

"But surely, there's nothing wrong with switching partners, right, Harry? I've heard that this kind of thing has been done before." To which Harry nodded uncertainly. It was true the partners were switched from time to time depending on the situation.

"Well, I think it's a good idea to send Hermione and Theodore on that particular mission then." Luna declared.

"Excuse me?" Lavender butted in. "But wouldn't that be defeating the purpose of pushing Malfoy and Hermione together?"

Luna waved her off a bit impatiently. "Given how they explode at each other the past few days, I'm pretty sure Harry would agree with me in separating them from each other for a while."

To this, Harry had to agree. The girl thought in a weird way but her cleverness was all Ravenclaw. "Luna does have a point." Harry began slowly. "Hermione is the best Auror for this job but I can't jeopardize the mission in case one of them blow ups. And Nott is certainly second to Draco in terms of skills on the field."

"That's great! See you next week then, same time same place?" Luna replied standing up as if getting ready to leave.

"We're done?" Astoria asked. "That's this week's plan? How is that even going to get them together?"

"Oh, it will." The Ravenclaw said as she took Crabbe by the hand to the floo. "I'll ask the Nargles to make sure of it." With that, the couple disappeared through the fire.


	4. Chapter 4

Fred and George Weasley burst in Harry's living room with Astoria in tow, two crates of firewhiskey levitating behind them. Meanwhile Pansy was tapping her foot irritably against the soft carpeted floor.

"A bit early, aren't you Pansy?" Astoria said good-naturedly.

"Harry told me the meeting was at six." Pansy scowled. "Should have known it was a ploy to make me arrive early."

"But didn't you like getting here early, love?" Harry whispered at her ear suggestively to which Pansy reddened and Astoria rolled her eyes.

"What's with the firewhiskey, anyway?" Lavender pouted as she pat her swollen belly, obviously put off that everyone except her would be drinking that night.

"Why, tonight calls for a celebration of sorts, Lav-Lav!" George exclaimed merrily. "As Fred and I were saying earlier, Luna is definitely a Ravenclaw."

"I'm assuming her plan worked then?" Daphne asked.

"I wasn't aware there was even a plan." Goyle replied.

"It was more like putting the pieces in their places and letting them move on their own." Luna told them with a smile.

"I don't get it." Ron said. "Malfoy and Hermione are still fighting."

"But the thing is, Ronnie, this time they're fighting because Malfoy's jealous." Fred said patronizingly.

Harry chuckled. "I could almost see the smoke churning out of Malfoy's ears when I told him Nott was paired with Hermione for last Friday's assignment."

"Don't forget the way he looked when he found out what exactly Hermione would be doing at the Poisoned Apple." Blaise smirked. He was also an Auror working under Harry and stuck around the Head Auror's office that day when he found out that Hermione and Nott were to be briefed later.

"Why?" Crabbe asked curiously, "what was it that Granger was supposed to do?"

Harry gave another chuckle, "Hermione went undercover as a stripper."

It was then that the rest understood Harry's words last week that Hermione was 'the best Auror' for the job. Being the youngest and most brilliant female Auror at the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, Hermione was more than equipped for the job.

"You see, the club's owner himself had a deal with this guy from Bulgaria. An exchange of Dark items with other Dark items. The only problem is the item is so small it could be hidden in the seams of the cloak." Harry explained. "To cut the long story short, Hermione went to the suites with the man at the pretense of going to bed with him and retrieved the item giving us enough evidence to apprehend those involved."

"Hermione as a stripper." Lavender muttered. "No wonder Draco got so bothered."

"I think what bothered him the most is that it was Nott who would be there with Hermione in her skimpy clothes and not him." Ron said amused.

"Oh, Draco was bothered alright." Blaise declared with a smirk. "By nine in the evening last Friday, he was wearing a hole on our manor's floor with his incessant pacing. Had to placate mother that her favorite friend of mine wasn't about to collapse with stress. The boy was paler than he used to and that is saying something."

"Did you ask him why, Blaise?" Astoria asked with a lopsided grin, unable to contain her mirth at Draco's obvious display of jealousy and worry.

"He snapped out some remark about Nott being an incompetent arse and _his_ partner wouldn't be safe with him. Cursed Potter a few times for what he said was a severe lapse of judgment and then dragged me off to Knockturn Alley."

"Knockturn Alley?" Harry said with a frown. "You didn't go inside the Poisoned Apple did you, Zabini? That would be compromising the mission and I could seriously get you in trouble for that."

Blaise waved him off dismissively. "Stop the lecture, Potter. We settled in the pub next door." The Slytherin made a face. "The ale they have is not something I would recommend, though." Then he smirked. "Draco didn't seem to mind. He downed a whole bottle by himself trying to calm his nerves about what was happening next door. I swear, if he didn't know how important this mission was, he would have barged in."

"Well, he didn't have to wait long." Harry replied. "The mission was under the wraps by eleven."

"Oh, but we're not yet at the best part, Potter!" Blaise exclaimed. "As soon as Draco saw Theo and Granger emerge from the club followed by the gang of ruffians they just caught, he made to go to them immediately."

Blaise remembered the way his friend was downing his glass of ale tensely as he watched the window. Though this was the intended reaction of the whole thing, he couldn't help but worry at the unhealthy pallor Draco's skin has taken or the way his fingers gripped the glass tightly signaling his discomfort at the entire situation. Blaise was saved from having to do anything when Draco suddenly stood up and dropped a couple of galleons at the counter as he dragged Blaise to the door.

Theodore Nott was holding the door open for a scantily-clad Hermione Granger when Blaise and Draco managed to get out to the streets. Behind them were the apprehended criminals in their magical shackles and was being herded by magic to the closest Apparition point. The boys saw Hermione shiver at the frigid night air and as Draco was about to approach them, the two males saw Nott remove his cloak and drape it to her shoulders tenderly, eliciting a warm smile from the curly-haired witch.

Draco stopped in his tracks as his partner and former Slytherin dorm-mate reached the Apparition point and vanished into the night. If Blaise hadn't been watching closely, he would have entirely missed the livid expression on Draco's face before it was once again schooled into an emotionless mask.

"So you see now why this could be considered our little victory?" George grinned as he passed around the liquor-filled glasses to everyone. "Malfoy has, at long last, can no longer deny his feelings for Hermione."

"But you do realize that getting Draco to admit to himself what he feels is not enough to put them together?" Pansy said pensively, "stubborn as a mule, that one."

"And so is Hermione." Ginny replied.

"Is it even possible to just force him to ask Hermione out nicely?" Ron said hopefully.

Astoria scoffed. "In your dreams, Weasley. I thought we have just established that the people we are setting up are annoyingly hard-headed ones that refuse the very thing that's best for them? The only scenario where I see your suggestion happening is one where they're both royally smashed."

And then all of a sudden, Ginny was looking at Astoria like she was some sort of genius.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Five: Truly and Royally Smashed

Ginny looked at the gathered crew in front of her smugly as she nestled deeper into Blaise's arms. A few of them had doubted the genius in her plan. True, some were hopeful that an encounter heavily loaded with alcohol would finally loosen up Hermione Granger and Draco Malfoy a little but the rest frowned upon the idea, thinking that alcohol would only cause the two to act more inflammatory towards each other.

The rest had finally conceded on the condition that at least a couple of them would stay sober in case Hermione and Draco flew off the handle again.

"I won't say I told you so." Ginny said in a mocking, sing-song voice.

Ron winced at the high pitch his sister used. "Shut up and hand me the Hang-Over Potion."

The crew had returned from a night of drinking at around dawn. A lot of them promptly slumped off and went to sleep until late noon when they were roused by a bossy Pansy Parkinson and a smug Ginny Weasley who demanded they go to Potter's house that instant for what had become their weekly meeting on meddling with friends' love lives.

Thus explains why Ronald Weasley was draped on one of Harry Potter's couches downing a bottle of Hang-Over Potion like his life depended on it as his girlfriend, Daphne, looked like she had just swallowed a bucket of Blast Ended Skrewts.

The twins and Astoria fared no better as they were slumped against each other, bottles of Hang-Over Potion in their hands as well.

Luna didn't even manage to stay awake as she promptly fell asleep using Crabbe as a pillow upon arrival at 12 Grimmauld Place.

Lavender could only look at them, annoyed, that she was left out of the drinking fun again. At least her husband, Greg, wasn't in the loop too.

The rest of them, having been the ones to watch over Draco and Hermione the previous night, were faring somewhat better, and Harry even managed to get up before noon and whip up a batch of Hang-Over Potion for the rest of them.

He passed around the last of the vials of the potion and then promptly slumped on the couch beside Pansy, who he noticed was fretting nervously by his side.

"What's wrong, Pansy?" He asked concerned.

"I'm worried about Draco and Granger." She whispered. "What if they're still not getting along by the wedding? I don't want a tense atmosphere at my wedding, Harry!"

Harry and Pansy's wedding were in two week's time and she had everything planned to perfection.

"Don't worry, Pansy." He reassured her. "I'm sure even though they don't get along, they would surely be civil to each other at the wedding. Especially at the entourage." To which Pansy responded with a slight smile.

"And don't forget the fact that they went home together last night." Ginny reminded them cheerfully.

Last night could be considered the finest point of their plotting. And all it took were three main ingredients.

A Hermione in a skimpy, form-fitting gold dress.

A jealous Draco, with the events of last week's mission still fresh on his mind.

And alcohol. Lots and lots of alcohol.

Under the pretense of very clingy friends in need of more attention from a certain workaholic witch, Hermione has agreed, albeit grudgingly, for Pansy, Ginny, and Luna to dress her up in a very revealing gold dress and take her to the newest club in Diagon Alley for a night of drinking and debauchery.

Draco was already sitting amongst the boys and the Greengrass sisters. Lavender Goyle and her husband were as expected, weren't among present company, given the woman's pregnancy.

Upon their arrival, Pansy promptly squeezed in between Harry and Ron and gave her fiancé a full kiss on the lips, Luna dragged Crabbe to dance floor and Ginny plopped down on Blaise's lap. Immediately, Astoria plastered her body against Fred's in order to make space between her and Draco indicating that that should be the place where Hermione sits.

Ginny watched her friend look at the spot calculatingly, as if analyzing whether it would be worth it to sit beside Malfoy for an indefinite period of time or risk a night of Astoria's whining that she didn't want to sit beside the Slytherin girl. Astoria Greengrass had a budding friendship with Hermione, and though the former still addresses Hermione by her last name most of the time, everyone knew how much Astoria looked up to her and hung out with her every chance she got.

Ginny was suddenly pulled out of her remembrance of the previous night by Blaise's throaty chuckle. "You know, I haven't told you people yet, but watching Draco _not _get an aneurysm at the way Granger's body was pressed against him in that crowded couch was too funny."

Harry looked at him weirdly. "I was watching him and Malfoy looked pretty calm to me the whole time."

To which, Zabini shook his head amused. "That's the thing." He said. "Draco was _too_ relaxed. Almost as if he was forcing himself to be. Also, there was also the matter of him gripping his wine glass too hard again, something he does when stressed, and let's not forget how he wolfishly watched Granger on the dance floor before being fed up and going to her himself."

"I do wish somebody would include us in the loop." Lavender huffed, annoyed. "If we knew you would be ignoring us this much, Greg and I would just have stayed home!"

Pansy was about to bite back with a scathing remark but was quelled by the apologetic look on Goyle's face. She satisfied herself by muttering 'temperamental bitch' under her breath instead.

"I'll give you a rundown, Lavender." Daphne said, apparently gaining enough of her wits back to participate in the conversation. "First, Granger, who was wearing practically nothing, was forced to sit in very close proximity with Draco, which as Blaise kindly pointed out, almost gave the man aneurysms. Then, we practically poured liquor down their throats before Astoria here, decided to take Granger to the floor for some dancing."

"It was a pretty good idea, if I must say." Astoria butted in. "It was the provocation that Draco needed to approach her."

"Oh, he was provoked alright." Fred groaned as he was reminded of the murderous glare the Malfoy heir transfixed on him as he danced with Hermione that night. He truly wanted to dance with Astoria but upon the girl's insistence that one of the twins dance with Hermione to make Draco jealous, he and George tossed a coin. And he lost. Curse his twin for using his double-headed coin and curse him for forgetting about it. Not that Hermione wasn't a good dancer, oh no. He just didn't fancy a pair of grey eyes boring a hole into his skull with an intense glare all night.

He also didn't fancy the strong shove Draco gave him that almost sent him toppling to the floor. He was going to retaliate but he saw the intense stare Draco was giving Hermione and the equally fierce expression on the brunette witch's face and decided to stay out of it and find his girlfriend and his brother.

That night, they saw the pair dance, getting closer and closer to each other with every beat. The two of them failed to return to the couch where the evening began when the friends have finally regrouped. The last thing anyone has heard of them was Harry testifying that they hurried to the Apparition point and disappeared together into the night.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter Six: A Very Stressful Wedding Rehearsal

It was at the Parkinson Manor garden, facing the wrath of Pansy Parkinson that the group found themselves the following Saturday. The witch was pacing frantically, a scowl permanently etched on her face. Her fiancé tried to placate her but was continually getting snapped at for his efforts. Finally, she ground out through clenched teeth.

"Can somebody please explain to me what happened here?"

Harry and Pansy's wedding were in a week's time and today was the final wedding rehearsal. Everything had been going splendidly. Except one bridesmaid and one groomsman have been avoiding each other like crazy throughout the practice, and when time came for them to walk down the aisle together, the tension was so thick you could cut it with a butter knife.

Nobody answered the livid witch's inquiry. "Weaselette!" She spat angrily, reverting to childhood insults, showing how upset she really is. "You assured me that everything was fine!"

Nobody knew why, but according to Harry, Draco and Hermione have been maintaining this type of atmosphere since they went to work last Monday. As smooth as their last plan had sailed, it apparently didn't work.

One particularly unsatisfying run later, Pansy had had enough and called for a break. Hermione quickly blurted out excuses about getting food and hurried off inside the manor. Draco silently stalked away to the farther parts of the vast garden, effectively leaving the schemers to themselves.

Ginny flared up instantly. She did not appreciate being called a Weaselette in that derogatory tone that was reminiscent of her Hogwarts days when Slytherin and Gryffindor were still enemies. "Bloody hell, Parkinson! How am I supposed to know? Are you implying that I am to blame for this?" She replied indignantly.

"Well, if the shoe fits." Said a haughty Pansy.

"Oh, you! You self-righteous slag! How dare you put the blame on me! You thought getting them drunk was a splendid idea as well!"

Pansy snorted. "I should have known better than trust a Weasley and their insipid plans."

"Enough of that, Pansy." Harry said in a low tone, effectively cutting off Ginny's reply. Pansy looked at him like he'd grown a second head.

"Oh, so that's how it's going to be, Potter? Going to your ex-girlfriend's aid?" She sneered. "Why don't you just go off and marry her instead, then? Oh, I forgot. She broke up with you and hooked up with Zabini instead. Can't say I blame her. Blaise is much richer, sexier, and more handsome than you'd ever be!" With that, Pansy stalked off angrily leaving her bewildered fiancé behind.

Everyone stared at Pansy's retreating form. Silence reigned among the group for a good ten minutes, not knowing what to say.

"She didn't mean it, Harry." Blaise said carefully as the other man slumped miserably on one of the garden chairs. Harry offered him a tentative smile.

"I know, Blaise. I just don't want to fight with her this close to our wedding."

"This is all Draco and Hermione's fault." George pouted. "I thought everything had already gone well. They went home together on our last night-out and I'm willing to bet my galleons that they didn't spend the night together playing Exploding Snap."

"They were terribly awkward at work this week, I'm betting that even though they slept together, they still managed to mess it up." Blaise groaned.

"We have to fix this, Harry." Astoria said quietly, upset at her friend's misery.

"I know, Astoria. But I have no idea how."

"Follow her, mate." Ron urged, pertaining to Pansy. "Try talking some sense into her."

"No." Ginny countered. "I know Pansy. It's best to let her head cool first."

"Did Hermione tell you anything, Ron?" Harry asked to which the red head replied with a shake of his head.

"She didn't tell me anything either." Harry groaned in frustration. "You'd think running around fighting a psychopath Dark Wizard for seven years would warrant us knowing about each other's lives, but no, she refuses to say anything."

"Anything from Draco's end?" Fred asked hopefully.

Blaise scoffed. "That boy is more defensive about his secrets than Snape and McGonagall with their night time trysts."

All eyes where on the BlaiseZabini, disbelievingly. He only looked at them like they were out of their minds.

"Why are you all looking at me like that? Didn't you know?"

"How can you ask that like what you just said is common knowledge?" George said, wide-eyed.

"You mean it isn't? Oh, Merlin, this is delicious. I could use it as leverage to get those rare potions ingredients from Severus! Don't tell him!"

"It's not like we make it a point to catch up with our old professors over a cup of tea, Blaise." Ginny said with a roll of her eyes. "How you even managed to know about this, I have no idea."

"Oh, that's easy enough! I was doing prefect patrols in seventh year, and I saw them going at it on top of Madam Pince's desk. Snape had his hand under McGonagall's robes and- "

"Bloody hell, Blaise! Nobody wants to here about that!" Heads were turned at the voice that resounded from behind them.

DracoMalfoy approached the group, shaking his head with a disgusted expression on his face.

"Really, Blaise," Draco continued, "I think I speak for everyone when I say we don't fancy hearing about McGonagall and Snape shagging inside the library."

As accurate as Draco's statement was at the misgivings of his friends over their ex-professors' love affairs, nobody really heard what he just said. Everybody was looking at the girl who was standing beside him. Or more accurately, at the way their hands intertwined with each other.

Hermione Granger stood beside the pale boy with a content smile on her face. Everyone looked at them, wide-eyed and open-mouthed.

It was Harry who recovered first. "Hermione, you're holding his hand!" He blurted out.

Draco rolled his eyes. "Very astute, Potter. How fitting for the Head Auror."

"Congratulations, Malfoy." Blaise said smoothly, as if this was exactly what he expected. Never mind that he was also openly gaping at the pair a moment ago.

"So are the two of you going out now?" Fred grinned.

"Yes." Hermione said as her smile widened. "And I know it might come as a bit of a shock since our track record in getting along is anything but stellar. Anyway, it's not like your approval would change our decision, but I'm really hoping you would support us in this."

"You're thinking we wouldn't support you?" Ron asked incredulously.

"Well, I'm hoping you would."

"Are you kidding?" Ron exclaimed. "After all we did?"

Hermione narrowed her eyes. "What do you mean after all you did?"

"He means after all the things he, Harry, and you did together, why wouldn't they support you?" Pansy interjected smoothly as her arms snaked around her fiancé's body, suddenly returning to the scene.

"Oh," Hermione said, placated. "Thank you." She said with a genuine smile and threw her arms around Ron. Draco rolled his eyes and slapped the redhead at the back good-naturedly as a sign of appreciation.

"Nice save, Parkinson." Harry whispered as he looked on at the tender moment between his friends.

"Miss me, Potter?"

"Definitely. Ready to go back to the wedding rehearsals?"

Pansy smirked. "Maybe later. How about the two of us rehearse the thing that happens after the wedding instead?"

Harry was truly happy they were back on speaking terms.

* * *

A/N: The next chapter would be the last one unless I get enough inspiration to write an epilogue. =))


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: This would be the last chapter, unless I manage to think of a better ending or whip up a pretty good epilogue. Thank you to all the people who reviewed!

* * *

Chapter Seven: The Road to Getting Together

Draco Malfoy is annoyed.

Fighting with the Light during the war doesn't change who he is. An arrogant, pureblood snob who's used to getting what he wants when he wants it.

But Hermione Granger won't give him that.

For Merlin's sake, they've already shagged but the bloody woman won't even look him in the eye. She even had the gall to go out and have lunch with Nott earlier this week. And now, in Pansy's wedding rehearsal, the tension between them is not only unavoidable but it has also become unbearable.

Draco wonders if he did anything wrong that night that sent her scurrying off to the opposite direction. He was rudely interrupted from his musings by a familiar hellish screech. How Potter puts up with this, Draco has no idea.

"Stop screaming like a banshee, Pansy! I'm trying to think here."

"Think?" She said shrilly, "think? If you tried doing that more often, then perhaps we wouldn't be in this predicament, Draco!"

"What in Circe's name are you talking about, woman?" He replied exasperatedly.

"What did you do to mess it up with Granger?" She said lethally.

Draco was taken aback. How did she know about the situation between him and Granger? Granted, the atmosphere seemed worse than usual but the way Pansy said it suggests that she knows more than she's letting on. And since when did Pansy meddle with his love affairs?

"I didn't do anything wrong!"

"You shagged her and left, Draco!"

"Where did you even get that idea? I didn't!"

"Then care to explain this tense atmosphere after the two of you went home together last week?"

"I don't want to. Stop bossing me around, Pansy!"

"I will if you stop ruining my wedding!"

Draco stilled. "What?" He asked, genuinely confused. "I'm not doing anything, Pans." He said gently.

"Only a little bit more and you and Granger would be hexing each other as you walk down the altar." Pansy said bitterly. "It's supposed to be a happy occasion, Draco. How can we enjoy with that aura the two of you are giving off?"

"It's not exactly something we can fix, Pansy." Draco muttered.

"Don't give me that." The girl said vehemently. "You make this right, Draco Malfoy. I won't have two overgrown teenagers who can't admit their feelings to themselves deny me my perfect wedding!"

Pansy Parkinson is a petite yet formidable young woman and soon, Draco found himself thinking of ways to make things better with Hermione, convincing himself that he was doing this as a favor to his childhood friend, but really, everyone knows he's doing it to save his own hide.

He found Hermione in the manor's kitchen, staring solemnly at the steaming mug of ginger tea in front of her.

"Granger." He stated as-a-matter-of-factly.

The brunette witch looked up from her mug and replied in an equally toneless voice. "Malfoy."

"Pansy has this weird idea that we're fighting. She wants it to stop." He said.

"Oh, and we aren't?"

Draco furrowed his brow. "Don't we normally treat each other contemptuously anyway?"

"In case you haven't noticed, Malfoy, the way we're around each other have gone from bad to worse. At least before, I could stand to be in the same area as you provided you keep your big fat mouth shut. Now, the mere sight of you makes my hand itching for my wand. I really have to talk to Harry about switching partners at work."

Hermione mumbled the last part under her breath but Draco caught it. "Switching partners?" He sneered. "How professional of you, Granger. Who would you want to switch to? Nott? I can't believe how petty you are!"

Hermione's temper rose, which always seemed to happen with Draco. "Petty?" She shrieked. "How dare you call me petty! You're the one who didn't want to talk to me after what happened last Saturday night!"

"You're blaming me?" Draco replied, equally incensed, "I'm the one who woke up alone only to find out in the office that you were traipsing with Nott!"

"Excuse me? I left you a note saying that I had to finish the report from the Poisoned Apple mission with _my partner_, Theodore! If only you cleaned your flat more often, you would have seen my message and found that out directly from me!"

"Oh, so Nott's your partner now, is he, Granger? Got comfy with him the other week, didn't you? Did you shag him too, Granger? I wouldn't be surprised, after all what you're wearing that night is not too big a jump from being naked."

Hermione's eyes flashed from anger to mirth in a second. "Were you stalking me, Malfoy? I didn't know you cared."

"Shut up, Granger." Draco said coloring a little. "I just happened to be around the neighborhood."

"Oh, honestly! As if bars at Knockturn Alley are places you frequent! You know what, Malfoy, if only you behaved yourself at Zabini's ball, then maybe Harry wouldn't feel the need to find me a different partner, then you wouldn't have to lurk in seedy Knockturn Alley bars just to know what happened!"

"Don't flatter yourself, Granger." Draco snorted. "And what are you going on about Zabini's ball? You were the one who pushed me away like I'm some savage you wouldn't want to be seen with."

"Because you keep on bringing up that thing that happened when we were working on the Department of Mysteries break-in!"

Draco smirked as Hermione got more flustered. "I see you still got difficulties over bringing up that one. I wonder why. You don't seem to find it hard to bring up that we've shagged."

"I don't want to be reminded of that night! That was obviously a mistake!"

Draco looked at her incredulously. "Care to enlighten me, Granger, why you think shagging is okay but consider snogging a mistake?"

"Will you shut up?" Hermione yelled exasperatedly, coloring slightly at the memory of the Department of Mysteries mission.

They had kissed that night. It was a heat-of-the-moment thing, Hermione would say to herself, and this was partly true as Draco later claimed that he kissed her to shut her up during one of their arguments. However, Hermione couldn't help but wonder at the softer, less urgent, and almost sweet turn their lips had taken as time passed. She couldn't help but wonder what other things that particular kiss might have brought if only the culprit hadn't made itself known at that exact moment, causing them to break apart and to focus on Auror duties once more.

Hermione didn't like to admit it, but she hated remembering that kiss because as opposed to the way they had shagged, the kiss was evidence that the need between them went beyond physical.

It was a reminder of the feelings that she so desperately wishes to deny.

"This is stupid, Granger." Draco said finally, after a long silence.

"Yes, well, don't worry. I'm going to request a formal and final change in partners first thing on Monday." Hermione said, slightly hurt at what she thought he was insinuating.

"I wasn't talking about that!" Draco replied fiercely. "And don't you dare run to Nott. I forbid it."

"Well, you weren't actually clear on what you were talking about, weren't you?" Hermione bit back. "And how dare you tell me what I could and couldn't do! I wasn't even talking about Theodore but now that you mention it, I think that's a splendid idea! I'm going to bring it up with Harry."

In two strides, Draco was right in front of Hermione, gripping her forearms tightly, his eyes livid. "You are mine, Granger." And then his lips were on hers.

Hermione did not find it in herself to resist.

The kiss was like what it was the first time. Angry and forceful at the beginning and soft and passionate at the end. Hermione's emotions went on a rampage as her mind quarreled with her heart whether she was truly doing the right thing. The night she spent with him flashed through her mind making her moan into his mouth. She fought valiantly, struggling to remind herself why she thought a relationship with him was wrong, pretending that she didn't feel that they were two puzzle pieces that perfectly fit. Pretending that she still hated the man Draco Malfoy had become. Pretending she wasn't already in love with him. She pretended until she could pretend no more. It was she who broke the kiss as Draco whined at the loss of contact.

"Go out with me, Malfoy." She said breathlessly right after they broke apart, willing the high from the kiss to give her the boldness she needs.

Draco looked at her like she had grown a second head. Hermione bit her lip, her fears kicking her in the gut and when she was about to retract what she had just said, Draco spoke. "Why do you always have to be the one who says things first?"

Hermione grinned, relief washing over her. "Is that a yes, Mr. Malfoy?"

"Only if you stop gallivanting with Nott." Draco made a face.

Hermione made a show of pondering upon this idea. "I'll consider it." She smirked. "Now kiss me again, Draco."

He gladly acquiesced.


End file.
